India said on Monday there was nothing usual in US ambassador Richard Verma’s visit to Arunanchal Pradesh last week, apparently responding to China’s objection to the trip to the northeastern state that Beijing claims as its own.

“The US ambassador visited Arunachal Pradesh, a state which is an integral part of the country to which he is accredited. There is nothing unusual in it”, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

Verma posted photos on his Twitter account on Friday of his trip to Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang. The envoy thanked Indian officials for their “warm hospitality” and called the state a “magical place”.

But Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said China was “firmly opposed” to the US diplomat’s visit.

Kang said this will “damage the hard-earned peace and tranquillity of the China-India border region.”

“Any responsible third party should respect efforts by China and India to seek peaceful and stable reconciliation, and not the opposite,” Lu told a press briefing.